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Industry News
Chinese port closure disrupts Australian trade
China’s partial closure of a major container port, paired with restrictions on air cargo flights, put pressure on Australian importers in September. A key terminal at the Ningbo-Zhoushan port closed for eight days after a worker contracted COVID-19.
Ships bound for the world’s third busiest port were diverted to Shanghai and Hong Kong, worsening congestion affecting shipments to and from Australia.
Australian importers say China’s zero-case COVID-19 strategy means a single infection can close an entire port, while strict regulations covering food products such as dairy transported via cold chain are creating further logistics bottlenecks.
Paul Zalai, Director of the Freight & Trade Alliance, says importers are still adjusting to delays at Yantian, where similar health concerns resulted in extensive delays for several weeks up until mid-June.
“Even ports at Singapore and Hong Kong that set the benchmark in best practice in normal times are experiencing several weeks of delays in transhipping containerised cargo via their terminals,” Paul says.
“The downstream impact is being felt hard locally, with shipping lines daily advising our industry of port omissions across Australia’s container terminal.”
Lars Jensen, Chief Executive of Consultancy Vespucci Maritime, says the shutdown in Ningbo was due to just a single positive case in a port worker.
“The risk, therefore, remains that other Chinese ports could see the same if we are unlucky. That, in turn, would make a challenging situation even worse,” Lars says.
China has recently also tightened requirements for international flight crew and airport staff in a move expected to reduce air cargo movement in and out of the country.
Favco Industrial Park has begun a new era in logistics management amid the South Western Sydney industrial market boom.
Colliers has introduced Western Sydney’s first multistorey industrial opportunity located at 28 Yarrunga Road, Prestons, on behalf of private developer Favelle Favco.
A long-term business in South Western Sydney, Favelle Favco specialises in crane technology for heavy lifting and super high-rise buildings.
Fab Dalfonso, National Director Industrial for Colliers says there’s been a heightened demand for inner city distribution centres and last mile hubs that allow retailers to position inventory much closer to the end consumer.
“We are honoured to present Western Sydney’s first two-level industrial facility,” Fab says. “Favco Industrial Park is a state-of-the-art warehouse, logistics and office facility featuring multiple tenancies.”
The Favco Industrial Park will deliver world-class logistics facilities with tenancies over two levels ranging from 6842sqm to 30,592sqm. Standout features include super-high internal clearance, truck access with B-Double compatibility across two levels, and multiple recessed loading docks. The tenancies are available nine to 12 months from signing the lease.
Rino Gazzera, Director Industrial for Colliers says the facility is positioned in one of the most well-located industrial precincts in NSW.
“The area delivers outstanding access to arterial roads, alongside key national infrastructure including Moorebank Intermodal and the under-construction Western Sydney Airport at Badgerys Creek,” Rino says.
Favelle Favco says it saw an opportunity to introduce a new and more efficient way of managing industrial warehousing needs in Australia.
“With Favco Industrial Park, we are adopting the same approach and are steadfast in our commitment to developing this landmark multistorey warehouse.,” Favco says.
“By bringing a sleek new offering to the warehouse model we believe Australia will embrace the efficiencies. The flexible warehouse space takes full advantage of the 30m height limit by cleverly threading a series of ramps, which provide seamless B-Double access to all levels.”
Award-winning architects Bureau SRH, responsible for Favco Industrial Park’s world-class design, believes multi-storey warehouse design is pivotal to any future A-grade industrial development given demand for convenient Sydney-based warehouse solutions continues to soar.
Current warehouse demand is exceeding supply and has pushed South Western Sydney vacancy rates under 4.3 per cent. This combined with land shortages across Sydney is likely to see multistorey warehousing shape the next phase of industrial property.
